In The Fullness Of Time
December 2021 |
In the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season, we often forget the reason for the season. Without remembering the birth of the Savior, Christmas is lost in the trivial pursuit of happiness.
Don’t misunderstand me. I love the lights, the Christmas carols, the gathering of friends, and the exchange of presents. However, without maintaining Jesus as the center of the celebration, Christmas can become a burden instead of a blessing.
Remember, Christmas is the celebration of God sending His only begotten Son in the fullness of time.
A Time Of Darkness
God had predetermined when Jesus would leave heaven and be born of a virgin. That time had come. It was the fullness of time. God sent the Light of the World in a time of spiritual darkness.
The Roman Empire worshipped a plethora of false gods and added to the list as they conquered new regions. Judaism had strayed far from what God had first established it to be. Jesus talked about “the feast of the Jews” instead of “My Father’s feasts.” The soul of man, both Jew and Gentile, was in gross darkness because of sin. It was spiritually dark. It was spiritually dead. It was the fullness of time.
Paul’s View Of The Incarnation Of Christ.
“But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (Gal. 4:4-5).
Paul spoke of a specific time, a time that God determined was complete. There was no more time to be added. God said, “Now is the time!” God determined that not one more day should be added to the appointed time before sending His Son.
Born Of A Woman
Jesus had to be born of a woman in order to be our substitute on the cross. However, we must always remember that Jesus’ birth was not a “natural” birth: “And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God” (Luke 1:35).
Jesus had to have a supernatural birth. The virgin birth of Christ was the only way for Jesus to be born without Adam’s sin. If not, He would have been disqualified as the Lamb of God. Jesus was 100 percent God and 100 percent man at the same time. This is called the hypostatic union of Christ.
Under The Law
“But when the fullness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons” (Gal. 4:4-5).
Jesus had to be born under the law. He was the only one to ever keep the law 100 percent of the time. When Jesus died, He said, “Tetelestai.” This was a perfect tense Greek verb meaning that it was a completed action with ongoing results. It has a double meaning. It means, “paid in full with the result that no more payments are necessary.” It also means, “It is finished with the result that the law is no longer binding on mankind.”
The last part of Paul’s explanation of God sending His Son in the fullness of time is that He came “to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive the adoption of sons.” Both the Jew, redeemed from the law; and the Gentiles, those adopted as sons, benefit from God sending His Son in the fullness of time. That is, if we accept the free gift of salvation offered to us through Jesus Christ and what He did at Calvary.
That is why I celebrate Christmas. I celebrate the beginning of my redemption. In the fullness of time, God gave us His Son, and in the fullness of grace, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Have you? If you haven’t, why not give yourself the best Christmas present ever. Why not ask Jesus to be your Lord and Savior? If you haven’t already, why not share Jesus with someone this Christmas?
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